Ports. A location on a coast or shore containing one or more harbours where ships can dock and transfer people or cargo to or from land.

Port vicinity. The area near a port where ballast water operations may occur, including areas where vessels may conduct ballast water discharge or uptake operations when approaching a port or leaving it, e.g., port approaches, anchorage areas and designated ballast water exchange areas. The dimension is port specific.

Marina. A specially designed harbour for pleasure craft and small boats.

Aquaculture sites. Areas set out for the purpose of farming aquatic organisms.

Marine Protected Area (MPA). Defined marine area where natural resources are given greater protection than the surrounding waters. Different categories exist depending on the level of protection afforded by legislation.

Migration pattern

Diurnal. Movements between alternative habitats over day and night, e.g. vertical migration.

Life-time. One time migration between different habitats during the life cycle, e.g. anadromus migration.

Not relevant. No evidence of any life history cycle stages to migrate.

Seasonal. Movements between alternative habitats during a specific time of a year (e.g., spawning and feeding migrations).

Pathway / Vector

Pathway

A pathway is the route a NIS takes to enter or spread through a on-native ecosystem e.g. vessels. Each pathway may have a number of vectors.

Vector

A vector is a transfer mechanism and is the physical means by which species are transported from one geographic region to another. More than one vector within a pathway may be involved in a transfer of species.

Canal de Midi (linking the Bay of Biscay with the Mediterranean Sea)Kiel Canal (linking the North Sea with the Baltic)Northern waterway (linking the Baltic with the Ponto-Caspian region through Volga river canal system)Rhone waterway (linking the North Sea with the Mediterranean)Southern waterway (linking the North Sea with the Black Sea through Danube river canal system)Central waterway (linking the Baltic Sea with the Black Sea through the Dnieper river canal system)Other waterwaysIrrigation canals

The species was actually found associated with the specific vector(s) of a pathway at the time of introduction to a particular locality within a country/country region.

Documented evidence of an introduction: release to the wild for stocking or biological control; escape/release of live food; import of cultured species and documented findings of their associate organisms, parasites and diseases on transmission; appearance of organisms by hull fouling, ballast water discharge sampling or other ship vectors documented upon an arrival with appropriate scientific methods.

Very likely

The species appears for the first time in a locality where a single pathway/vector(s) is known to operate and where there is no other explanation that can be argued for its presence except by this likely pathway/vector(s).

A highly localized distribution of a species in an area adjacent to an isolated port or other locality where the only pathway is vessels and its vector(s) (ballast water, hull fouling, etc). This often involves geographically discontinuous distributions. It may be a continuous spread as in case of introduction by canals or by natural means. The conclusion is deduced from the analysis of the invasion event and species distribution patterns.

Possible

The species cannot be convincingly ascribed to a single pathway, but is known to be introduced by this pathway(s) elsewhere.

There may be more than one pathway involved in the introduction within a country/country region. Arrival of a species known to have taken place elsewhere by the same pathway(s) which operates in an area. A conclusion is made by expert judgment based on pathways currently or historically present.

Unknown

Invasion of a given alien species cannot be clearly explained.

Where no rational explanation for the appearance of a species in a given country/region.

Population status

Population status (the lowest level of certainty):

Unknown. There is no reliable information on population status of a species.

Established. A species is known to form a reproducing population in a wild.

Not established. There is no evidence of a species’ reproducing population in a wild.

Population status (the moderate level of certainty):

Extinct/no recent record. There are old records where a species was recorded but have not been seen in the same region since.

Rare/single record. There are only casual observations or a single record of a species'presence available.

Common. A species with successfully reproducing populations in an open ecosystem, which are unlikely to be eliminated by man or natural causes. Not dominating native communities.

Abundant. A species with successfully reproducing populations in an open ecosystem, which are unlikely to be eliminated by man or natural causes. Locally dominating native communities.

Very abundant. A species with successfully reproducing populations in an open ecosystem, which are unlikely to be eliminated by man or natural causes. Largely dominating native communities.

Outbreak. A species undergoing pulse-like, short-term (days to few months) exponential population growth during which they have an adverse effect on one or more of the following: biological diversity, ecosystem functioning, socio-economic values and human health.

Source region

The area the species was introduced from to the recipient country/country region. Depending on the information availability may be ascribed to a particular locality (e.g. port), a country, a LME or a larger Ocean region.CAUTION: in many cases the source area will be not the same as the area of native origin which is defined in the SPECIES block of the database.

Species status

Non-indigenous species. Non-indigenous species (synonyms: alien, exotic, non-native, allochthonous, introduced) are species, subspecies or lower taxa (such as a variety, form) introduced outside of their natural range (past or present) and outside of their natural dispersal potential. This includes any propagule of a NIS, such as a gamete, seed or resting spore, a gravid female or a pair of individuals of different sexes (in sexual reproduction), or a vegetative reproductive organ and section of tissue (in asexual reproduction), which might survive, reproduce and subsequently form a population. It also includes hybrids between an alien species and an indigenous species, fertile polyploid organisms and artificially hybridized species irrespective of their natural range or dispersal potential.

Cryptogenic. Cryptogenic species are such species which cannot be reliably demonstrated as being either introduced or native. In some cases the true origin of a species remains obscure because of either insufficient taxonomic knowledge or due to a lack of records from the time they became introduced, or for other reasons.

Temperature range

Indicate min. and max. annual temperature range in the area where a species is known to maintain an established (reproducing) population.

Wave exposure

Exposed. Open coastline facing prevailing wind and receiving both wind-driven waves and swell.